Only Himself
by Uchiha B
Summary: Everywhere. Just... everywhere people recognised him as Captain America. For once, he just wanted to be just plain old Steve Rogers. Luckily for him, he might have just found that one special girl, IY/Avengers, Steve x Kagome
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Rated: T

* * *

Everywhere.

Just... everywhere.

Hell, he had even heard that they had built an _exhibition_ dedicated to him. It's not that he wasn't ungrateful to his fans, it was just some of them went a little too far.

_'I don't want one-night stands,' _Steve thought, jogging down the same path he used everyday, _'Why can't women understand that?'_

He wanted... more than that.

"Go with the flow," Stark had shrugged with his devious grin, "Because if you work it right, then you could become just as popular as me, with a woman for everyday of the week."

Times had changed... for the worst.

"Amaterasu-sama!"

Steve blinked, barely feeling something light hitting his front and bounce off his chest, "Miss!" He quickly moved down to where the girl had fell, "Miss, are you all right?!" He asked in alarm, seeing that she had crashed quite a distance away.

"Err– yes, I think," The girl answered, rubbing her side before taking his offered hand, "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention." She apologised sweetly with a smile and he noticed she didn't ogle him or anything of the sort, "Thank you, Mister...?"

In fact, she looked as if she didn't recognise him at all–!?

Was that possible?


	2. Chapter 2

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Rated: T

* * *

Was that possible?

Honestly, he sure did hope so.

"Rogers," Steve cleared his throat, "Steve Rogers, Miss." He wasn't sure why he flushed slightly when she smiled at him, but it wasn't a horrid feeling.

It felt... warm actually.

"Kagome Higurashi," She introduced herself and he was almost ecstatic when she didn't seem to recognise him at all and not even a glimmer of recognition appeared at all in her beautiful blue eyes, "Nice to meet you, Mister Rogers."

"Please, just Steve is fine," Steve said, "I'm sorry I knocked you down. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"I have gone through worse," She winked at him with that same smile and he felt like a magnet drawn towards it, "A little bump is nothing. Please, don't worry about it."

Just what did she go through then?

"Look at you, Rogers!" Another voice interrupted and the two glanced over to a man who was jogging in place while smirking at Steve, "First time I've ever seen talking to a woman!"

Steve sighed and threw a smirk back at the man, whom Kagome was staring at curiously, obviously wondering if they knew each other.

"First time for everything, Sam."


	3. Chapter 3

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Rated: T

* * *

"Are you two friends?"

Kagome asked with a friendly smile, able to see the budding bond between them.

"Jogging buddies, if you can call us that," Sam moved a bit closer, huffing a bit from his workout run, "The Captain here doesn't know the meaning of 'slow down'."

Steve glared a bit, immediately hearing what he didn't want to hear because Kagome might have been able put a name to his face and he just didn't want that.

But instead, much to relief, she only blinked curiously.

"Captain?" She repeated, looking at Steve with those wonderful eyes of hers, "Are you a police officer, Steve?" She asked.

"Something like that," Steve answered vaguely, throwing Sam a look to which he stared, then seemed to understand and mouthed an apology, "Miss Kagome, this is Sam Wilson, a friend of mine."

"Nice to meet you, Sam," Kagome bowed her head a bit and took Sam's offered hand in a handshake, "Do you both run here often?"

"Everyday," Steve quickly answered and looked away when Sam wiggled his brows suggestively, "Is this your jogging spot, Miss Kagome?"

"Yes," Kagome nodded with a smile and her eyes then lit up, "Mind if I join your little club of two?"

"The more the merrier," Sam smirked at Steve and patted his shoulder like he was congratulating him, "I'm sure Rogers here could use the competition."

And that was simply the start of everything...


	4. Chapter 4

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Rated: T

* * *

"A race?"

Kagome blinked, glancing over at a smirking Sam, who had suggested a friendly competition between the three of them.

"A 100-metre sprint," Sam's smirk widened, "All out." He knew he would definitely lose against Steve, but Kagome seemed tough enough to have a close race with.

"If you don't want to, Miss Kagome, then it's okay!" Steve quickly said, though he could see the glimmer of competition begin to swirl within her eyes.

"It sounds like fun," Kagome waved off Steve's concern with a grateful smile, "Though a competition usually means a prize, right?"

"High stakes, huh?" Sam hummed, "Third place buys lunch. What do you say, Rogers?" He asked the blond super soldier.

"If Miss Kagome is up to it, then so am I," Steve smirked himself, "I agree with your prize."

"Let's do this," Kagome stretched, letting out a breath as he prepared her lungs to go all out, "But I won't go easy on you two."

"Neither will I." Steve murmured, feeling an exciting heat begin to build within him as Kagome smirked at him.

After a few moments, the three lined up on the jogging path after asking a random jogger to count from three, "Three, two, one, GO!"

With that, the trio sped off.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Rated: T

* * *

They picked a small café.

"Damn," Sam cursed and threw Kagome an impressed look, "You were fast. How the hell did you manage to get so fast?" He wondered out loud.

"Practise," Kagome said, ordering a simple and cheap sandwich because she didn't want to impose on Sam, even if he suggested the loser buys lunch, "Lots of it."

"Track and field in high school?" Steve asked curiously, ordering the same thing as Kagome, though times three due to his high metabolism, "I've never seen anyone as fast as you, Miss Kagome, other than myself."

She wasn't as fast as him of course, but she could probably be on par with Natasha if they were to race.

"Eh," Kagome suddenly looked guilty, "Actually, I barely even graduated high school," She looked a bit sheepish, "The high school I went to was more of a delinquent school. There weren't really any organised sports there."

Ishiyama High had been the only one to accept her horrid grades after all.

"That's okay, Miss Kagome," Steve immediately went to answer, not wanting for her to feel bad, "Academics aren't for everyone." He shrugged, not seeing the problem.

"Thanks for not looking down on me," Kagome was grateful, having been the receiving end of sneers, "You really are a kind person, Steve."

Sam smirked at Steve, who flushed at the comment and cleared his throat while Kagome seemed rather clueless to his reaction.

The comfortable proceeding silence was then broken by Kagome, who glanced between them, "So, have any of you heard of these Avengers?" She asked like she didn't know just how big they were.

Steve and Sam could only stare.


	6. Chapter 6

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Rated: T

* * *

"Haven't you?"

Steve asked carefully, not wanting to reveal himself as Captain America while Sam could only blink a few times in surprise.

"Not really," Kagome shrugged, "I really don't care for such things," She said, much to their shock, "But it's all my little brother is talking about these days."

"Yeah?" Sam nodded when Steve threw him a warning look, getting the message behind the glare, "Does your brother have a favourite Avenger?"

"Yes," Kagome suddenly looked thoughtful as she tried to remember which one Souta liked, "It was either Tin Man or the one with the shield."

Sam immediately burst out laughing and Steve knocked his cup of coffee on the ground while Kagome looked on innocently, "Did I say something wrong?"

"I think you're referring to Iron Man," Steve said after mopping up his spilled coffee with a few napkins, "Not Tin Man – though that's a reference I actually get."

"Is there a difference?" Kagome asked mildly, sipping her tea while Sam could barely hold back his snickers and Steve shook his head.

"I think Stark might have a say in that," Steve muttered, though Kagome could hear him anyway, "And then give you a lecture between the differences of tin and iron that you won't understand."

"Stark?" Kagome repeated, looking thoughtful again, "That sounds kind of familiar." She wondered and both Steve and Sam looked shocked once more.

"You've never heard of Tony Stark?" Sam asked incredulously, but Kagome only tilted her head and answered with a no, "Do you live under a rock!?"

"Sam!" Steve looked at his friend with a frown, though Kagome only laughed in response.

"Don't worry, Steve," Kagome waved it off and much to Steve's amazement, she gave a perfect answer, "I'm not much into modern stuff like cell phones and computers. I like the outdoors and all that."

Was this girl made for him?


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Rated: T

* * *

She sounded perfect.

For him at least.

"So you really know nothing about the Avengers?" Sam asked, now knowing why she didn't recognise Steve for who he was.

"Well, they are really popular back in Japan right now," Kagome hummed, "They seem to appear a lot in fan-made comics – especially the yaoi ones."

"Yow-wee?" Steve tried to repeat the foreign word, but sort of failed, "Is that a Japanese term?" He asked curiously.

"I suppose boy love comics would be the closest translation?" Kagome looked thoughtful, "Anyways, most of it is between Tin Man and Shield Man or just non-con Shield Man."

Sam almost fell out of his chair, bursting out laughing for the second time while Steve just stared at her incredulously, "D-did you just call Captain America 'Shield Man'?!"

"Is that his name?" Kagome asked with disinterest, "I'm sure that Japan fixates on... Captain America (was it?) the most for some reason."

_'Non-consensual? Me and Stark?' _Steve could only wonder hopelessly, "Do the Japanese hate Captain America?" He asked in a strained tone.

"No... the Japanese just tend to feature really strange... fetishes around characters they love," Kagome shrugged, "Fan-made comics are extremely popular in Japan. I like to avoid the tentacle rape and such."

What?

Steve sighed, almost hanging his head when Sam mouthed 'you have it bad' over to him. He simply wanted to move past this disturbing topic and went to ask Kagome his next question.

"Do you have a favourite Avenger, Miss Kagome?"


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Rated: T

* * *

"Do you have a favourite Avenger?"

Kagome sipped at her tea, pondering Steve's question. She didn't know much about the superhero group other what than Souta had told her.

She did, however, remember one detail quite clearly.

"Probably the archer by default," She answered, startling Steve and she could only smile sweetly at him, "Since I'm an archer myself."

"Hawkeye is pretty badass," Sam agreed, "Archery looks pretty hard if you have to ask me," He shrugged, "So you don't like Captain America the most?"

"I can't really say," Kagome responded, "I don't even know what he looks like. For all I know, he could be in it for all the glory."

Steve frowned, but he honestly could not blame her way of thinking since it was, sadly enough, the way most people thought nowadays. After all, one could say Stark was half in it for the recognition.

"But I suppose the very opposite could be true as well," Kagome surprised him by going on with her previous thought, "Maybe they all just want to help people with what they have."

Damn.

This girl just _had _to be made for him.

"I like Hawkeye too," Steve smiled, speaking truthfully. Barton was a rather sarcastic man, but when it came down to it, he listened to orders and would lay down his life if he had to, "I would really like to see your archery one day, Miss Kagome."

She could only smile back, looking absolutely adorable when that light flush that he only caught because of his advanced eyesight.

"I would like that too."


	9. Chapter 9

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Rated: T

* * *

"How long have you been practising?"

Steve asked, desperate to keep the conversation on so she wouldn't realise they were still very much strangers to her.

He didn't want her to leave, not yet.

"Archery?" Kagome hummed, "I picked it up about four years ago. I admit it wasn't as a hobby in the beginning as much as it was necessary."

What did that mean?

"Family traditions?" Sam asked, knowing that Japanese families was rather traditional. He could see that Steve was struggling to come up with anything to say and wanted to help the man out.

They hadn't even known each other for a few hours and already Steve was that smitten with the girl.

Hell, Sam was pretty interested himself since Kagome didn't seem like a normal girl one would expect her to be.

"You... can say that," Kagome finally answered, "Going from far, far back. I can trace my family all the way back five hundred years."

"Damn, that's a long time." Sam was impressed and the three looked up from the coffeehouse patio to see a sleek black car pull up not too far from them.

Steve cursed mentally when the window rolled down to reveal a very familiar red-haired woman, knowing exactly what it meant.

"Hey, any of you know where the Smithsonian is?" The woman asked with a smirk, staring at Steve, "I'm here to pick up a fossil."

_'Damn her timing,' _Steve sighed, giving Natasha a wave before turning back to Kagome, "Would you... mind if I wanted to see you again?" Much to his amusement, she flushed quite visibly, but gave the answer he wanted to hear.

"I would really like that too, Steve."


	10. Chapter 10

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Rated: T

* * *

"So."

Oh, he was dreading it already as Natasha stared at him from the corner of her eyes from the driver's seat, "Yes?" He responded a bit impatiently.

"Who is she?" Natasha asked with that infuriating smirk and for the moment, Steve definitely preferred her more impassive self, "I've never seen you look at any woman like that."

"I just met her this morning," Steve answered with exasperation, "We're fellow joggers on the same path." He simply said, not wanting Kagome's privacy invaded by S.H.I.E.L.D just because she was acquainted with him.

"And you normally invite just a 'fellow jogger' on a date?" Natasha snickered, having fun teasing the blond man while he just flushed from annoyance.

"It wasn't a date," Steve said dryly, "I'm sure you noticed that Sam was there too."

"So you swing both ways," Natasha shrugged and Steve choked for a moment before he realised she was just joking with him, "What's her name?"

"Why?" Steve asked warily, "She's just a civilian. You don't need to be digging through her life." He said firmly.

"You need to be careful, Steve," Natasha's voice levelled out to her normal tone, "You have your fans, you know that. She might just be looking for her fifteen minutes of fame."

She was trained, but even Natasha jumped when Steve punched his side of the car, easily bending it to the shape of his fist.

"Kagome is _not _like that!"


	11. Chapter 11

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Rated: T

* * *

"Souta?"

Kagome picked up her cell phone, having said goodbye to Sam a few moments after Steve had left. She had gotten both of their information, intending on meeting up with them for their daily jogging sessions and to possibly see Steve for other things.

"Hey, Nee-chan," Souta greeted on the other side, "How's it going?" He asked casually and Kagome was suddenly suspicious.

"What do you want?" She asked in a dry voice, having heard that tone from her little brother only when he really wanted something.

"You're living in Washington D.C. right now, aren't you?" Souta asked and she blinked, giving a positive to his question, "There's something I really want there, Nee-chan."

"What is it?" She asked, having no idea what he could possibly want.

"Well, there's a Captain America exhibit going on there right now," Souta explained and she sighed, suddenly knowing what he wanted, "Can you go there and take pictures for me? Pleeaaase?"

"I suppose so," Kagome smirked, "But it's going to cost you," She snickered when Souta groaned through the phone, "All right?"

"Yeah, yeah," Souta said, "Just get the pictures for me and I'll do whatever you want." He sighed dramatically and she only rolled her eyes in response.

"Okay then," Kagome smiled, "I'll get on it today. Love you, Souta." Her smile only widened when he coughed embarrassingly at her affection.

"Me too," He mumbled, "Talk to you later, Nee-chan." With that, they both hung up and she suddenly knew what her day plans were going to be.

If she only knew...


	12. Chapter 12

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Rated: T

* * *

It was busy.

_Really _busy.

_'Damn Souta,' _Kagome thought miserably as she was bumped rather rudely in the side by a bunch of squealing fan-girls who seemed to be gushing over something she probably didn't care about, _'He really owes me for this.'_

What was so great about Captain America anyway?

_'I still don't even know what he looks like.' _Kagome thought vaguely, taking a few pictures of whatever she thought Souta would find interesting.

She didn't know why people came to the exhibit just to see some old ratty military uniforms and that was saying something since she usually loved history.

Kagome read a few of the profiles, namely those dubbed the 'Howling Commandos' and then seemed to find herself somewhat interested after reading their heroics before moving onto the next profile.

Bucky Barnes.

She had to admit that she felt a little sorry for Captain America after reading about Bucky Barnes' death since she knew what it was like to lose someone special.

_'Inuyasha.' _Kagome thought mournfully before shaking her head and shoving the thought away. She didn't want to fall into another depression again and so to distract herself, moved onto the next room which was exclusively for Captain America himself.

She snapped a few more pictures and somehow managed to get to his profile past the crowds and was prepared to take one more picture before double-taking at one particular thing.

There was Captain America's picture and profile right in front of her and she shakily lowered her camera to get a closer look. However, it was quite clear who she was really looking at.

_'Steve?'_


	13. Chapter 13

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Rated: T

* * *

_'Steve?'_

Was that even possible?

_'Steve is Captain America?' _Kagome thought with some disbelief, simply staring at Captain America's profile until it finally sunk it.

Wow.

_'I wonder why he didn't say anything,' _Kagome wondered for a moment, _'I guess he just didn't want me to know for some reason.'_

She could understand.

He might have thought that she would go all crazy over him and judging by the people who packed the exhibition, he must have a lot of fans of the wild kind.

_'Oh, Amaterasu-sama,' _Kagome felt her cheeks flooding with heat as she just remembered something, _'I said all those things to him.'_

It must have been awkward for Steve to know that the Japanese liked to pair him up with that Stark person and even do all those non-con type of things.

How embarrassing for him.

_'I need to apologise to him.' _Kagome sighed, wondering when she was going to see him again, if he even wanted to that is.

She didn't care that he was a hero or not, he was just that nice man whom she had bumped into on that jogging path.

_'Figures that I would bump into someone who isn't a normal person,' _Kagome thought with amusement, having taken enough pictures for Souta as she left the exhibition, _'But I suppose that's just my luck.'_

And she considered herself _really_ lucky this time around...


	14. Chapter 14

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Rated: T

* * *

She was careful.

And Steve didn't blame her after his little loss of temper. The car ride had been silent after he had punched it, until he apologised that is.

"It's fine, Rogers," Natasha finally said, "I suppose I can understand how difficult a love life can be if you're... well-known." She was careful not to say 'celebrity' or 'hero' because she knew he didn't like being called those.

"She's... different," Steve said after she accepted his apology, "I can tell she's not like the rest. It's in her eyes. It's like she has seen... more." He struggled to explain.

"Seen what exactly?" Natasha asked with a more impassive tone, remembering to go back to S.H.I.E.L.D to look up the girl just in case after their mission.

"Natasha," Steve warned, knowing exactly what the assassin was thinking, "Can't you just let Kagome alone?" He asked calmly, "She didn't even know who the Avengers were."

"And it might just be an act," Natasha had to say it, knowing Steve didn't want to hear it, "You need to be careful." She warned again.

"I know," Steve murmured, "But I believe that Kagome is just an innocent civilian." He smiled at the very thought of her.

Natasha refrained from letting out a sigh and simply kept her eyes on the road. She didn't want Steve to get hurt as a teammate of both S.H.I.E.L.D and the Avengers.

She only hoped he knew what he was doing...


	15. Chapter 15

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Rated: T

* * *

His mission was done.

And honestly, Steve was not happy.

Yes, the mission went fine in itself, but he wasn't happy that Fury didn't bother to tell him that Natasha had a completely different agenda then rescuing the S.H.I.E.L.D hostages from Georges Batroc and his mercenaries.

At first, he wanted to see Fury right away, but he knew he was a little too angry to do so.

_'Should I?' _Steve stared at his cell phone, his fingers just itching to press the button on one of his contacts, a specific one he should say, _'I did say I wanted to see her again.'_

The next thing he knew, he had his phone to his ear and was tapping his foot impatiently while waiting for her to pick up.

"Moshi Moshi!"

Steve blinked at the happy greeting, not too sure what it meant, but he was happy to recognise the voice, "Kagome?" He asked just to make sure.

"That meant hello, if you didn't know," Kagome said sheepishly, "So, what can I help you with?" She asked cheerfully and he couldn't help but to smile.

"I know we just saw each other yesterday, but would you mind going out for coffee again?" He asked, finding himself nervous even if he pretty much knew her answer.

"Sure, I would love to!" Kagome answered enthusiastically, "At the same place?" She asked.

"That sounds good," Steve nodded, "I'll be there as soon as I can." With that, they said their goodbyes for now and he hung up, feeling rather upbeat even if his anger at Fury hadn't subsided yet.

He had a date.


	16. Chapter 16

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Rated: T

* * *

She had a date!

She couldn't help but to be excited that she was going to see Steve again, even if he was Captain America.

_'Should I say something about it?' _Kagome wondered, sipping at her tea and looking anxiously through the window to see if she could spot the blond.

Her heart beat just a little faster once she spotted him.

_'He's just a friend,' _Kagome had to say to herself, feeling her face grow hot with heat as he waved at her through the window and hurried into the little coffeehouse, _'Just a... friend.'_

"Hope you weren't waiting long, Miss Kagome," Steve said with that handsome smile and sat down across from her when she motioned for him to do so, "I'm really glad that you said yes."

"I like you, Steve," Kagome said happily, laughing into her tea when he looked away in embarrassment and then smiled awkwardly at her, "Of course I wanted to see you again."

"You're... different," Steve admitted, "Everywhere I go, there were women following me, wanting things from me." He said, not seemingly realising what exactly he was saying.

"I don't want anything from you except your friendship," Kagome said calmly, "Even if you are some sort of hero."

Steve quickly looked up at her with question and Kagome looked away sheepishly, scratching at her cheek rather nervously.

"I know you are Captain America."


	17. Chapter 17

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Rated: T

* * *

Oh.

_Oh_.

"How do you know?" Steve asked rather calmly, though inside he was panicking just a little. He wanted to remain just a normal man in Kagome's eyes.

"I went to that exhibit to take pictures for my little brother," Kagome admitted, "But it changes nothing! I don't care that you are Captain America!"

"It doesn't bother you?" Steve asked quietly, "You could be targeted for just being my acquaintance." He stated with a frown, not liking the very idea Kagome could be in danger because of him.

"It's okay," Kagome answered a bit solemnly, "I know I don't look like much, but I can handle myself just fine." She said, much to Steve's surprise.

"Are you trained in something?" Steve asked with a bit of shock, but then remembered Kagome had beaten Sam in that race rather easily.

"Like you wouldn't believe," Kagome muttered, wincing once she remembered the hell Sesshoumaru had put her through just so she could protect herself. Sango hadn't been easy on her either, "Just trust me."

"I do," Steve admitted with a tiny flush, "I just don't want you hurt because of me."

"What kind of threats do you deal with?" Kagome asked curiously, "Other than that whole... alien thing, was it?"

"I can't tell you," Steve said apologetically, "It's classified."

"No matter," Kagome shrugged, fine with not knowing, "You will only be just 'Steve' to me." She smiled and he cleared his throat awkwardly, but hadn't felt this happy in a long time and knew one thing almost instantly.

He wanted her.


	18. Chapter 18

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Rated: T

* * *

His phone beeped.

Steve blinked, not expecting any one to contact him since he had just gotten back from a mission, "Excuse me." He said, only bringing out his cell phone once Kagome nodded at him.

It was a text from Natasha.

_Kagome Higurashi_

_She checks out except for her middle school years. Ask her about them_

_N.R._

Steve frowned, not liking that Natasha had used her S.H.I.E.L.D contacts to look up the background of Kagome, though he couldn't help but to wonder what was wrong with her middle school years.

He immediately put his cell phone away, not sure if he even had the right to know about Kagome's middle school years.

Everyone deserved their privacy after all.

"Was that important?" Kagome asked anxiously, "I don't want to be taking up your time if you have something more important to do."

Was she a God-send?

"It was nothing," Steve reassured her, taking the last drink of his coffee, "Would you like to go for a walk, Miss Kagome?" He could see that people were starting to take notice of them both and he certainly wanted to get away before a crowd started to form.

"Sure!" Kagome answered happily, flushing a bit when he offered her his hand and pushed her in chair. He didn't let go of her hand and was glad that she allowed it, "Oh, Steve?"

"Yes?" He smiled down at her and felt warmth when she flushed even harder and fiddled her free fingers.

"I'm so sorry for telling you all about that Captain America boys' love comic stuff!" She bowed her head apologetically and he could feel his own face heat up just about the thought of it and could only say one thing in response.

"Don't ever worry about it."


	19. Chapter 19

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Rated: T

* * *

"Where do you want to go?"

Steve pondered over the question, easily recognising the area, "If..." He began hesitantly, "If it isn't too forward of me, would you like to come back to my apartment?"

He looked away in his awkward way when Kagome quickly glanced over at him with surprise, "Inviting me back to your place on our first date?" She laughed a bit when he just scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "I would love to, Rogers." She teased.

"It's not that far from here," He went to reassure her, though she didn't really need it, "It's not too forward of me, is it?"

"I'm sure other men ask for a lot more," Kagome waved it off, "I once met a man who groped me the first time I met him." She snickered at his face and wondered how Steve and Miroku would have got along if they had ever met.

"That's quite disrespectful," Steve said with a frown, "I was raised to treat women with the utmost respect."

"It's okay," Kagome said gently, patting his arm, "He actually became one of my closest friends." She said wistfully and he squeezed her hand.

The two fell comfortably silent as they walked, holding hands tightly until Steve stopped in front of his apartment building, "It's not much," He said, "But I live here." He smiled when Kagome responded perfectly.

"It suits you."


	20. Chapter 20

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Rated: T

* * *

The apartment building was nice.

The duo swept the stairs quickly until they reached Steve's floor and Kagome almost bumped her nose against his back when he stopped a bit suddenly.

"Afternoon." Steve greeted a woman politely who was dressed in scrubs and who had just hung up her cell phone as soon as she caught sight of him.

The pretty blonde smiled, but then blinked when she noticed Kagome looking at her from behind Steve, "Who's this?" Her tone was friendly enough, yet there seemed to be something tight with it.

"Kagome Higurashi," Kagome introduced herself with a smile, not missing how the blonde's eyes seemed to scan her form, "Are you Steve's neighbour?"

"She is," Steve nodded, his tone friendly but distant, "Miss Kagome, this is..." He paused when he realised he didn't even know his neighbour's name.

"Sharon Carter," The blonde filled it in for him, "I didn't know you had a girlfriend." She said casually, though her fingers tightened on her laundry basket.

"I'm not his girlfriend yet!" Kagome quickly went to say in a flustered tone, not realising what she had just said, though Steve easily caught the word.

Yet.

_'That means there is a chance,' _Steve thought hopefully and gave another polite smile to Sharon, "Nice seeing you." He said, nodding at her and went to unlock his door to invite Kagome in.

Sharon nodded back, not moving as the two disappeared into Steve's apartment. Her lips tightened and she wasn't sure if she had to report this or not.

She had never expected Steve to be dating...


End file.
